University Privacy Officer

Description

Southern New Hampshire University is a team of innovators. World changers. Individuals who believe in progress with purpose. Since 1932, our people-centered strategy has defined us — and helped us grow a team that now serves over 180,000 learners worldwide.

Our mission to transform lives is made possible by talented people who bring diverse industry experience, backgrounds and skills to the university. And today, we're ready to expand our reach. All we need is you.

Make an impact — from near or far

At SNHU, you'll have the option to work remotely in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

We ask that our remote employees have access to a reliable internet connection and a dedicated, properly equipped workspace that is free of distractions. Employees must reside in, and work from, one of the above approved states.

The opportunity

Under the supervision of the Senior Vice President and General Counsel, you will play a critical role in the development, maturation, and continuous improvement of Southern New Hampshire University's privacy program. You will be responsible for helping to build, operationalize, and oversee a comprehensive, risk-based privacy program covering the full privacy lifecycle, including the collection, use, sharing, retention, disposal, and protection of personal data that aligns with the University's mission, structure, regulatory and policy requirements, and evolving data environment.

You will partner across academic, administrative, and technology functions to embed privacy compliance into institutional processes, strengthen governance, and enable responsible data use in support of student success and innovation working collaboratively with stakeholders who maintain operational responsibility for data and privacy practices within their respective areas. You will translate regulatory requirements into practical, scalable processes and help establish repeatable, sustainable privacy practices across the institution. #LI-Remote

What you will do:

Privacy Program Development & Governance

• Lead the development, governance, and continuous maturation of a scalable, risk-based university privacy program aligned with institutional priorities, including chairing Privacy Committee(s) and participating in cross-functional working groups.
• Develop, maintain, and oversee implementation of privacy policies, standards, procedures, and communication strategies in collaboration with stakeholders and governance bodies.
• Integrate privacy oversight into existing compliance, audit, and risk management processes, and prepare annual privacy program reports for senior leadership.

Risk Assessment & Compliance

• Lead and continuously improve privacy risk assessment processes, including Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs), periodic enterprise-wide privacy risk assessments, and identification of risk mitigation strategies in partnership with the Information Security Management Office (ISMO) and other stakeholders.
• Assess the effectiveness and maturity of the University's privacy program, including governance, policies, training, and controls, and support remediation and continuous improvement efforts.
• Oversee third-party privacy assessments, audits, and related remediation activities to ensure alignment with institutional policies and applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
• Support cyber insurance review and selection efforts to strengthen institutional risk mitigation strategies.

Regulatory Monitoring & Implementation

• Monitor privacy-related regulatory developments and translate legal, regulatory, contractual, and programmatic requirements into actionable institutional practices.
• Partner with Legal, Compliance, and Information Security to align privacy requirements with broader compliance, governance, and risk management frameworks.

Incident Response & Issue Management

• Support the University's privacy incident response program by coordinating with ISMO, Legal, and other stakeholders to address privacy incidents, inquiries, complaints, and related matters in accordance with applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
• Develop and promote consistent processes for identifying, managing, escalating, and resolving privacy-related issues and incidents.

Training, Awareness & Advisory

• Design, implement, and maintain a comprehensive privacy training and awareness program that promotes responsible data stewardship and privacy best practices across the University.
• Serve as the University's privacy subject matter expert, providing guidance, consultation, and collaboration on privacy requirements, data use, analytics, emerging technologies, and institutional initiatives.

What we're looking for:

• Bachelor's Degree and 10 Years of experience in privacy, compliance, risk management or related field (conducting enterprise-wide privacy assessments, privacy governance, chairing committees, privacy program development, etc.)
• Relevant privacy-related professional certifications such as CIPP/US, CIPM, CIPT, or similar
• Demonstrated experience building or significantly contributing to privacy or compliance programs
• Strong knowledge of U.S. privacy laws and regulations (e.g., FERPA, GLBA, HIPAA)
• Familiarity with global privacy frameworks (e.g., GDPR, "UK GDPR," DPDPA, PIPL, PIPEDA)
• Experience working in complex, decentralized organizations of significant scale; experience in environments with large volumes of personal data, multi-state or multi-jurisdictional regulatory obligations, or enterprise-wide technology platforms is strongly preferred
• Demonstrated analytical and problem-solving skills to assess compliance risks and develop appropriate responses
• Demonstrated sound ethical judgment, discretion with sensitive information,collaboration, adaptability, initiative, diplomacy, and practical learning agility to support privacy, compliance, and institutional risk management responsibilities.

We believe real innovation comes from inclusion - where different experiences, perspectives and talents are celebrated. So if you're wondering whether SNHU is right for you, take the leap and apply. You might be just the person we're looking for.

Compensation

Exceptional benefits (because you’re exceptional)

You’re the whole package. Your benefits should be, too. As a full-time employee at SNHU, you’ll get:

• High-quality, low-deductible medical insurance

• Low to no-cost dental and vision plans

• 5 weeks of paid time off (plus almost a dozen paid holidays)

• Employer-funded retirement

• Free tuition program

• Parental leave

• Mental health and wellbeing resources